Self-employed, male (% of male employment) in World
World: Self-employed, male (% of male employment) was 47.0% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Self-employed, male (% of male employment) in World, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
In 2025, self-employed, male (% of male employment) in World stood at 47.0%. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
The figure is down 0.3% on the previous year and down 1.7% over ten years.
Over the whole period, self-employed, male (% of male employment) in World peaked at 52.5% in 1993 and was at its lowest, 47.0%, in 2025.
That places World 22nd out of 47 groups with data for 2025, putting it in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Self-employed, male (% of male employment) in World, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 52.5% | — |
| 1992 | 52.5% | +0.1% |
| 1993 | 52.5% | +0.0% |
| 1994 | 52.5% | -0.1% |
| 1995 | 52.4% | -0.2% |
| 1996 | 52.2% | -0.3% |
| 1997 | 52.0% | -0.3% |
| 1998 | 52.0% | +0.0% |
| 1999 | 51.9% | -0.2% |
| 2000 | 51.7% | -0.3% |
| 2001 | 51.6% | -0.4% |
| 2002 | 51.4% | -0.3% |
| 2003 | 51.4% | -0.0% |
| 2004 | 51.1% | -0.7% |
| 2005 | 50.6% | -0.8% |
| 2006 | 50.3% | -0.7% |
| 2007 | 49.9% | -0.8% |
| 2008 | 49.6% | -0.6% |
| 2009 | 49.7% | +0.2% |
| 2010 | 49.5% | -0.5% |
| 2011 | 49.1% | -0.9% |
| 2012 | 48.6% | -1.0% |
| 2013 | 48.4% | -0.3% |
| 2014 | 48.2% | -0.5% |
| 2015 | 47.8% | -0.7% |
| 2016 | 47.7% | -0.4% |
| 2017 | 47.5% | -0.3% |
| 2018 | 47.4% | -0.3% |
| 2019 | 47.3% | -0.1% |
| 2020 | 47.9% | +1.1% |
| 2021 | 47.7% | -0.4% |
| 2022 | 47.7% | +0.0% |
| 2023 | 47.4% | -0.7% |
| 2024 | 47.2% | -0.5% |
| 2025 | 47.0% | -0.3% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 52.3% | 51.9% | 52.5% | 9 |
| 2000s | 50.7% | 49.6% | 51.7% | 10 |
| 2010s | 48.2% | 47.3% | 49.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 47.5% | 47.0% | 47.9% | 6 |
Countries ranked near World
- 19 Lao People's Democratic Republic 73.1% compare
- 20 Mali 73.0% compare
- 21 Papua New Guinea 72.4% compare
- 22 Nepal 71.4% compare
- 23 Timor-Leste 70.7% compare
- 24 Haiti 70.2% compare
- 25 Togo 68.6% compare
More work & labour data for World
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes, annual -0.1226 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male, annual growth -0.1316 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female, annual growth -0.1143 % change on previous year (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population, annual growth rate -0.688 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population, annual growth rate 1.1 % change on previous year (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Urban population 6.68 million 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Rural population 3.09 million 1000 No (2050)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Female 5.10 million 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Male 5.08 million 1000 No (2100)
- Population - Est. & Proj. — Total Population - Both sexes 10.18 million 1000 No (2100)
Frequently asked questions
- What is self-employed, male (% of male employment) in World?
- Self-employed, male (% of male employment) in World was 47.0% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest self-employed, male (% of male employment) recorded in World?
- The highest recorded value was 52.5% in 1993.
- What is the lowest self-employed, male (% of male employment) recorded in World?
- The lowest recorded value was 47.0% in 2025.
- How does World rank for self-employed, male (% of male employment)?
- World ranks 22nd out of 47 groups with data for 2025.
- Is self-employed, male (% of male employment) rising or falling in World?
- Over the last ten years it is down 1.7%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this World data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Self-employed, male (% of male employment) (modeled ILO estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
CSV · JSON — 35 observations, free to reuse under CC BY 4.0 (World Bank Open Data).
About this data
Self-employed workers are those workers who, working on their own account or with one or a few partners or in cooperative, hold the type of jobs defined as a "self-employment jobs." i.e. jobs where the remuneration is directly dependent upon the profits derived from the goods and services produced. Self-employed workers include sub-categories of employers, own-account workers and members of producers' cooperatives and contributing family workers.